After 10 years, local body polls are being held in Guntur throwing up interesting possibilities. The term of the last elected council of the Guntur Municipal Corporation expired in the year 2010 and since then the GMC is being headed by a Special Officer who is also the District Collector.
The city has 57 divisions — 14 earmarked for unreserved candidates, 16 seats reserved for women, 19 seats reserved for BCs, seven seats reserved for SCs and one seat reserved for ST.
The previous council was headed by the Congress and the last Mayor was Rayapati Mohana Sai Krishna.
While the ruling YSR Congress Party seems to be upbeat about the prospects of a resounding victory, the Opposition TDP is on a defensive wicket as its lone MLA in the city, Maddali Giridhar switched his loyalties to the ruling party. On the day of notification, the TDP suffered a jolt as its MLC Dokka Manikya Vara Prasada Rao joined the YSRCP in the presence of Chief Minister Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy.
Mayor aspirants in YSRCP
Though the YSRCP has not announced its Mayoral candidate, the toss up could be between Padarthi Ramesh Gandhi and Lella Appireddy, while Kavati Manohar Naidu is also a keen contender. Mr. Ramesh Gandhi, a well-known businessman, has connections with all sections and joined the party during the padayatra of Mr. Jagan Mohan Reddy.
Mr. Appireddy is a known loyalist of the party and was in charge of Guntur West Assembly constituency till the year 2018, when the party brought in Chandragiri Yesuratnam, a former DIG of police, to contest in the polls held in April, 2019. But Mr. Yesuratnam lost the polls and was given the chairmanship of the Agricultural Market Committee, Guntur.
Mr. Reddy vied for the MLC, but with the Chief Minister keen on disbanding the Legislative Council, chances are that the party could ask Mr. Reddy to contest the polls.
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